Ancient City of Jiaohe

Chinese name: 交河故城（Jiao He Gu Cheng）
Location: Yaer County, Turpan, Xinjiang.
Ticket: Entrance ticket CNY70.00, sightseeing bus CNY30.00
Estimated tour time:1-3 hours
Recommended time to visit: May to Oct 
Nearby attractions: Grape Gully, Karez Water System, Flaming Mountain, Sugong Pagoda, etc.

Located in a 98-foot-high plateau in Yarnaz Valley, about 13 miles west of Turpan, Ancient City of Jiaohe (also known as Yarhotto) of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is viewed as one of the world's largest, oldest historic sites and the best preserved raw soil buildings with more than 2,000 years. In Tang Dynasty (618-907), it was the capital of the state of South Chechi and the political, economic, cultural and military centre. In 1961, it was listed as one of the country's key protected cultural sites in China. 

Ancient City of Jiaohe can go back to the second and the fifth century BC. It has remained a decade-long period of prosperity in Northern and Southern Dynasties (420-589) and Tang Dynasty, then was damaged during the 9th and the 14th centuries because of wars. Due to years of fighting and wars in Turpan at the end of Yuan dynasty (1206-1368), the place has fallen into crumbling and was deserted at last.

Like a willow leaf, the ancient city of Jiaohe  with a history of 2300 years lies between two rivers on a loess plateau atop a cliff of over 30 meters . The largest, oldest and best-preserved earthen city in the world, Jiaohe is 1,650 meters  by 300 meters at its widest; with an area of 220,000 square meters. It was included in the World Heritage List on June 22, 2014.

The ancient city was the capital of the former Cheshi State. An Indian proverb says, 'Intelligence is bound to exist where two rivers meet'. Jiaohe, meaning in Chinese where two rivers meet, is such a place. According to historical records it was home to 700 households, 6500 residents plus 865 soldiers.

The relics we see today featured Tang Dynasty ( 618-907) architectural style. Houses were dug downward from the earth, and as no house gates faced the streets, military defense was apparently priority.

At the end of the 8 Century, the city was tossed into the reigns of the Turpan, Hui, and Mongols. Residents fled from the destroyed city continuously until in the beginning of the 14 Century, the city was abandoned, as was its glory and prosperity of over 2000 years. Miraculously, owing to the arid climate and remote location, the ancient city of Jiaohe remains intact, leaving us a rare exemplar of an earthen castle.